Objectives

This study investigated age-related changes in functional status and self-rated health in elderly men, taking into account changes over time and differences between birth cohorts.

Methods

The Zutphen Elderly Study is a longitudinal study of men born in the Netherlands between 1900 and 1920.

Functional status and self-rated health were measured in 513 men in 1990, in 381 men in 1993, and in 340 men in 1995.

Age, time, and cohort effects were analyzed in a mixed longitudinal model.

Results

Longitudinal analyses showed that years of follow-up, the proportion of men without disabilities decreased from 53% to 39%, whereas the percentage who rated themselves as healthy de-creased from 50% to 35%. Cross-sectional analyses confirmed changes in functional status suggesting an age effect.